Revelation

stanza 3

The start of stanza three feels like it's being very rushed as the reader runs away from the farm. This makes the reader feel as if they are playing a role in this childhood fear. As she continues to run away, she starts to the smallest details that she didn't notice before:

Pulled the wings from butterflies

And blew up frogs with straws.

The poet uses gender stereotyping when she refers to the "big boys". The "big boys" come across as a threat as the narrator is outnumbered and I think she's afraid of the boys because they're destroying small, delicate creatures and the poet feels tiny compared to them. I believe the poet is emphasising that such beauty and fragility can be easily destroyed by something with much more power very easily:

Scared of the eggs shattering- / only my small and shaking hand on the jug's rim/ in case the milk should spill.

Lochhead is still fleeing but she worries about the security of the eggs and milk. I think that the poet is worried about women in general, being heartbroken by men, and confide in them too much. Also, the fact that the narrator was shaking tells the reader that it was indeed a traumatic experience for her, and the milk represents her innocence and childhood, which is the reason why she is so desperate to save every drop that she can.

Overall, Lochhead is definitely more aware of the dangers that she has faced and dangers that are yet to come, become more obvious. The poet makes the reader understand that not all things that you try to hide will always stay in the dark. The poet also gives her opinion on the male and female species which makes the reader think twice on the subject on who dominates whom. I believe that Lochhead is trying to convince or persuade the reader to try and notice the things in life that we don't really care to notice, and how we should be aware for any danger that we might possibly encounter in our future.